IRVING — Standing on the 16th tee
and tied for the lead Sunday at the HP Byron Nelson Championship, Keegan
Bradley heard the swell of the gallery and realized the cheers were for him.

“I felt like Phil,” he said.

Playing in pairings with Phil Mickelson, Bradley often
wondered what it would be like to hear the fans behind you, adoring, urging.
He’s heard worse. Fans and sportswriters over the last six months have
occasionally called him a “cheater” for using a belly-putter, a legal piece of
equipment for 30 years that has suddenly become the hottest and most divisive
topic in golf, shoving Bradley to the forefront of the controversy in the
process.

On Tuesday, he’ll find out if his detractors are right.

The U.S. Golf Association will announce a ruling on
whether it will ban “anchor” putting, the practice of anchoring belly putters
against the body. The USGA and Royal & Ancient Golf Club have already gone
on record supporting a ban. The European Tour and LPGA, too. Even Tiger Woods
and Arnold Palmer are on board.

Who’s not: The PGA of America and the PGA Tour, at least
not until Tuesday.

After the USGA and R&A made their feelings known last
winter, Tim Finchem, Tour commissioner, consulted the Player Advisory Council.
He subsequently came to the conclusion that a ban wasn’t “in the best interest
of the Tour.”

Finchem hasn’t said what he’ll do if the USGA rules
against the practice. But, really, what can he
do? Ignore his sport’s highest powers? It’d be like your parish thumbing its
nose at the Vatican.

If you haven’t been following this controversy, and you
rightly wonder, if belly putters have been legal for 30 years and no one’s made
a significant argument, why the fuss now?

Here’s why: Four of the last six majors have been won by
players anchoring putters.

Any time a trend develops that seems to favor one group
over another, it makes everyone in power suspicious.

Belly putters were once the province of players who had
lost their nerves. They were usually seniors or those close enough to consider
it, thus considered minor threats on the Tour. Bernhard Langer and Fred Couples
are typical examples.

But now there are more and more younger players switching
over. Some have never used any other style. Guan Tianlang does it, and he’s 14.

Bradley made anchor-putting a front-burner issue when he
became the first to do it and win a major, the 2011 PGA Championship. Over the
next couple of years, as media and even some players became openly critical,
fans responded in kind.

In February, after Bradley spoke publicly about being
heckled as a “cheater” at a tournament, the USGA felt compelled to issue a
statement in his defense. The statement called the incident “deplorable” and
reminded everyone that anchor putting is entirely within the rules, and will
remain so until further notice.

“There should not be a shred of criticism of such players
or any qualifications or doubt about their achievements,” the statement
continued, “and we think that it is inappropriate even to suggest anything to
the controversy.”

Of course, the USGA isn’t policing galleries or
pressrooms. Players and writers and fans will say or type or scream what they
please.

Meanwhile, players like Bradley have been caught in the
middle. He hasn’t decided what he’ll do if the USGA comes out against it. If
the Tour falls in line, the ruling wouldn’t go into effect until 2016. But if
you think heckling was a problem before the USGA made its stance official,
think of the colorful comments afterward.

The anchor putters will surely lose this fight, and
there’s nothing wrong with that. The USGA has acted honorably, if slowly, on
the issue. The players, including Adam Scott and Webb Simpson, will simply have
to adjust. Ernie Els, who won the British Open using the style, retired his
belly putter after the Masters in anticipation of the ruling. The rest should
follow suit.

But until the time comes, best for everyone to lighten up
a little. Golf is hard enough when you’re hearing the voices in your own head,
much less the chatter from outside.

As for Bradley, he said the noise has actually died down
the last couple of months, the last week in particular. Standing on the 16th
Sunday, he never felt so loved.

As it turned out, it wasn’t enough. He would miss a 4-foot
putt for birdie, probably costing him the tournament. Anchor putting didn’t
seem to help him then. Guess it made someone feel better.

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About Kevin Sherrington

Kevin Sherrington, a general sports columnist, was born in Dallas and grew up in Houston. He has worked at five newspapers in Texas. He has worked at The Dallas Morning News since 1985. He had no idea his career would come to blogging.